1. Field
The present application relates generally to the operation and design of antenna systems for use with mobile devices, and more particularly, to a millimeter (MM) wave antenna for use with mobile devices.
2. Background
There is an increasing demand to have mobile devices capable of high quality transmission and reception. One key to achieving high quality is associated with the performance of the antenna system. For example, it is desirable to have a high performance antenna system in a mobile device that can operate at frequencies in the millimeter wavelength range, (i.e., ten to one millimeters), which is extremely high frequency in the range of 30 to 300 gigahertz.
Unfortunately, the small size of typical mobile devices limits the placement and/or type of antenna array that may be used. For example, simple planar antennas, which may fit into the available space, may not provide the desired transmission patterns and/or performance at MM wave frequencies. Also, antenna systems designed to operate at lower frequencies may utilize mechanical switches that may be too large and have too much loss to be effective at MM wave frequencies.
Therefore, it is desirable to have a small size and low cost MM wave reconfigurable multi-beam antenna array for use in mobile devices.